DURHAM, N.C. — Pairwise, a health-focused food and agriculture company that applies cutting-edge gene editing technology to specialty produce and commodity crops, today announced the appointment of Ryan Bartlett as Chief Technology Officer. Bartlett holds a PhD in genetics and biochemistry from The University of Kansas and has extensive experience in agricultural R&D and product innovation. He brings 17 years of industry expertise to strengthen Pairwise’s growth in the wake of its first product launch, Conscious™ Greens, the first CRISPR food product to hit the U.S. market.
“Ryan is a strategic food and ag visionary whose career has propelled him through a number of leadership roles in which he oversaw trait discovery and strategic product development,” said Tom Adams, Chief Executive Officer at Pairwise. “This experience, combined with his expertise in operational efficiency and growth, will be a boon to Pairwise as we move forward beyond the launch of our first commercial product earlier this year.”
Bartlett’s passion for innovation lies at the intersection of agriculture and technology. This passion has been a catalyst for the product development he has led in multiple industry segments. He has led teams to bring more than 15 new ag technologies to market, including Rocket Seeds™ nutritional seed treatment and DEKALB® Disease Shield® Corn.
Bartlett comes to Pairwise from Compass Minerals International (CMP), where he served in multiple roles, including VP of Innovation, Chief Strategy Officer, and most recently, Senior Vice President of Lithium Commercial and Technology. Prior to Compass Minerals, Bartlett served in a number of technology leadership roles at the Monsanto Company, including Global Technology Development Innovation Lead.
“Pairwise is an exciting company that provides the opportunity for me to leverage my background and leadership in agriculture, life sciences and corporate strategy to influence the next generation of produce and row crops through deployment of revolutionary technologies,” said Bartlett. “I am excited to join a well-established team of Pairwise scientists already working to evolve what we eat. This industry is at an inflection point and Pairwise is at the forefront.”
Pairwise, a company dedicated to building a healthier world through better fruits and vegetables, recently launched its flagship product, Conscious™ Greens into the U.S. foodservice channel. The product is a nutrient-dense salad blend, that includes greens that have been gene edited to reduce their wasabi-like pungency, that the company moved from concept to commercialization in an unprecedented four years – a testament to the power of the company’s Fulcrum™ Platform to accelerate iterative breeding processes that previously sometimes took decades. Pairwise is currently developing new types of leafy greens, berries, and cherries using CRISPR and other emerging technologies.
In February 2021, Pairwise raised $90 million in a successful series B funding round, bringing total fundraising to $115 million. In the five years since the company’s founding, Pairwise has grown to over 150 employees, with additional anticipated growth later this year as the company prepares to enter the retail market.
About Pairwise: Driven by the belief that healthy food should be consistently fresh, delicious, and convenient, Pairwise brings together leaders in agriculture, technology, and consumer foods to harness the transformative potential of new genomics technologies to create innovative new products. Pairwise is working to develop new varieties of crops, and to partner with organizations that seek to drive innovation and access across the plant-based economy. The company was founded by Chief Executive Officer Tom Adams and Chief Business Officer Haven Baker, with scientific co-founders J. Keith Joung, Professor of Pathology at Harvard Medical School, David Liu, Director of the Merkin Institute of Transformative Technologies in Healthcare, and Vice-Chair of the Faculty at the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT; and Feng Zhang, McGovern Investigator and a professor at MIT. For more information, visit https://www.pairwise.com/home.
